Practitioners in Tennessee have hotly debated the issues of pre-injury arbitration agreements in health care, particularly in nursing home admission contracts. In the recent Owens v. National Health Corp.[1] issued on Nov. 8, 2007, the Tennessee Supreme Court held that pre-dispute arbitration agreements in nursing home contracts are not per se...

It does not seem as though a year has gone by already. Service as president of the Tennessee Bar Association has increased my deep appreciation for lawyers and judges, for our elected representatives and their importance in our society. This role has been a phenomenal learning experience and provided an excellent civic lesson for someone who has been...

A generation ago, Bob Woodward and Carl Armstrong shined an unaccustomed light onto the Supreme Court in The Brethren (1979). Now, 30 years later, New Yorker journalist and CNN analyst Jeffrey Toobin has written a new exposé that purports to take the reader "inside the secret world of the Supreme Court." Whether the book lives up to its tantalizing...

The Tennessee Bar Association was recognized in October with three Luminary Awards from the National Association of Bar Executives. The Tennessee Bar Journal earned a Luminary Award for The Law Launch Project, which followed 15 law students through their last year of school.

Chief Justice William M. Barker will retire Sept. 1 after a judicial career spanning 25 years. Barker, 66, is a native of Chattanooga. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Chattanooga and his law degree from the University of Cincinnati School of Law. In a letter to Gov. Phil Bredesen, Barker said he has "seen countless...

The 2008 Law Day Art and Essay Contest, sponsored by the Tennessee Bar Association Young Lawyers Division each year, allows students across the state to creatively express their ideas about living in a society that is governed by the rule of law.

Former Criminal Court Judge and TBA senior counselor FRED A. KELLY died Sept. 27 at the age of 93. Kelly graduated from the University of Tennessee and later served in World War II, earning the rank of captain. He graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1948 and began practicing law in Gallatin. A native of the city, he went...

The following attorneys have been reinstated to the practice of law after complying with Supreme Court Rule 21, which requires mandatory continuing legal education:Gary S. Genovese, Weston, Fla.Chelli Runelle Jones, Nashville

Corporate crime is big news. Lawyers practicing in Tennessee face an increasing likelihood of being asked to assist business clients in responding to an allegation of criminal wrongdoing. To protect the business and to avoid inadvertent harm to others (and your license), counsel must both understand the attorney-client privilege of an organization.

"Admit that bitch!" So said a student when she and her classmates were enjoying a beer and lunch at the Sunspot after my Evidence exam. Having endured four hours of hairsplitting multiple choice questions, largely on hearsay, she concluded that in future trials she should argue that most out-of-court statements ("bitches") are admissible.